A Chinese national committee for safety of genetically modified (GM) food has shelved the commercial production of GM rice in Nov. 2006, at least the fourth time since 2004, the Beijing Times reported Saturday. "The application was rejected because some safety-related data were missing," said Lu Baorong, member of the State Committee for the Safety of Agricultural Transgenic living Things. He, however, revealed that a pest-resistant GM rice has been given the go-ahead to be put into experimental production, the last step before a security pass could be granted. The debate on the pros and cons of GM food has been waging on for years in China, as it is the case worldwide. Huang Jikun, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) said the GM rice is good for the environment and farmers as it could reduce pesticide use by 80 percent and increase yield by six percent. "Our tests on the safety of GM rice have been going on for six years. The GM rice has proved to be safe," he said. Xue Dayuan, an expert with the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) said GM rice might harm the ecosystem as the new insect-resistant gene might cause some pests to mutate and affect the whole food chain. Many opponents are also worry that long-term consumption of GM products can harm the human body. "Genetically modified rice could cause an irreversible genetic pollution," Ma Tianjie, a project director with the international group Greenpeace said. A survey released earlier by Greenpeace shows that 50 percent of Chinese consumers prefer non-genetically modified food and only 26 percent said they were willing to try the genetically modified food. Currently only the United States has approved the production of GM rice for commercial purpose in restricted regions, he said. Editor: Yan Liang